1. The Field of the Invention
This invention relates to apparatus for restraining children and, more particularly, to novel systems and methods for safely restraining children to a seat in a carriage, stroller, chair, shopping cart or the like.
2. The Background Art
Children are active, growing, agile, curious, and resourceful. The propensity of children to move about, climb, squirm, explore, and wander is well known. Parents and guardians of children must be vigilant in protecting small children from wandering away, climbing out of shopping carts, falling from chairs, pitching forward out of strollers, and similar dangers. Even while a child is being fed, a momentary distraction of a parent may give opportunity to the child to squirm out of a chair in any convenient direction. Very small children can retract an arm or leg from a belt or strap very easily in many instances. Toddlers may lean, stand, slide or otherwise squirm out of a chair, even a high chair having a safety belt. Children may move so quickly that they represent a large risk, even for an attending adult who steps away momentarily to answer a telephone or retrieve food from a refrigerator across a room.
Also, sitters, grandparents, relatives and a host of others have occasional responsibility for small children. Many times these people are not equipped to regularly attend to the specific needs of the children. For example, a high chair for feeding a child may not be available. Perhaps a high chair is available, but three visiting children must be fed. A child restraint that can easily adapt any chair to serve as a high chair is needed. Also, a restraint that is comfortable, easily operated, and not easily defeated is needed for chairs and high chairs alike, as well as for shopping carts and carriages.
In addition, older infirm persons may need assistance in remaining upright in a chair. A safe restraint is needed to comfortably secure such a person in a chair. Adequate breathing requires a healthy posture for many guests at nursing homes. An attendant cannot stand all day in a sun room with each guest. Restraining a guest with makeshift straps may be cause for great liability. A simple, effective, economical restraint is needed for adults
A simple, safe, reliable restraint is not available for these applications. Particularly, an economical, washable, portable restraint that is adaptable to a carriage, stroller, chair and shopping cart is not available.
Restraints that are available are typically of two types. The first type is a body harness that resembles a parachute harness. These harnesses typically fit the body closely and uncomfortably. The harness must be provided with clips, fasteners, ties and the like for fastening to specialized anchors on a chair or at another location. Anchoring the harness at enough points to restrict motion in three dimensions is difficult. If successful, anchoring the harness in three dimensions is bulky and uncomfortable. Such a system will typically involve pounds of hardware or many feet of cumbersome strapping.
The second type of restraint is a system of straps that buckle, tie, wrap, and otherwise bundle a person and chair into a monolith. Typically, these restraints wrap around a seated person, fastening together two ends of a strap behind the chair, or under the chair. Several straps may be used. Two or more hands are needed to reach the two ends of each strap, bring them together and fasten them. A seated patient or child cannot be held while the restraint is being placed and fastened. Moreover, this type of restraint cannot typically be attached comfortably to a small child in a full-sized chair. The straps must pass completely around the chair, which defines the length of the straps. The envelope of the restraint includes the entire chairback, an object much larger than a small child. The result is that a restraint may be either uncomfortably tight, or else a child can tip to one side or another. In fact, a child can fall completely out of a chair and still be within the envelope circumscribed by the restraint. If such a restraint is loosened enough to be comfortable, a child could conceivably move to one side and become caught between the straps of the restraint and the edge of the chairback.
The systems available tend to be bulky, heavy, difficult to fit, not highly adjustable or else often tangled. Simpler systems are easily defeated. Children are especially adept at escaping from belts and tethers in all their varieties.
Infirm patients may be put at great risk after becoming improperly positioned in inadequate or makeshift restraints. Restraints may carry labels warning that patients and children should not be left unattended. The reality is that attention will never be uninterrupted, and a restraint must be reliable.
An inexpensive, reliable, safe restraint for children is not readily available. A strong, light, small, portable restraint is not available. A restraint that could fit in a diaper bag, taking no more space than a baby bottle or a diaper is needed. An economical restraint that can be readily washed for re-use should be available to a grandparent tending visiting children. Day care centers, hospitals, and nursing homes should be able to economically provide a restraint for any guest who requires it at any time. The restraints should be easily washable when soiled. A strong, compact, washable, adjustable, effective, inexpensive restraint is needed.